Category:Railroad Passes

RAILROAD PASSSES. From the very beginning of the industry, railroads occasionally needed to provide free transportation to individuals. Officials of other roads were sometimes given a tour of the lines, prospective shippers were invited to examine facilities before agreeing to contracts; employees needed to be transported to a work site, and so forth.

The method for regulating such free transportation was the pass. A pass generally took the form of a small piece of cardstock, about the size of a modern credit card with dimensions that allowed them to fit in a wallet. In rare instances, passes were made of some other material. For example, Otto Mears, legendary builder of Colorado narrow gauge railroads, issued a small number of pure silver passes encased in leather pouches. There are also instances of gold passes being issued for board members or wealthy individuals. However, for the most part, passes were simple pieces of heavy paper issued for a specific period of time and circumstances with the intention that they would be discarded after use.

Since almost all railroads, large and small, had occasion to issue passes, the variety of different railroad markings comes close to reflecting every railroad company that ever existed. Small, obscure lines could not afford a dining care service or a special china pattern, but they could afford to print passes.

In addition to having functional value, passes also served as a kind of business card, so many if not most railroads took some care in their design. Passes from the late 1800s tend to have ornate designs with elaborate lettering and occasionally beautiful engravings of company logos or other images.

---

Source:

"Railroad Passes," Railroadiana Online, Online: http://www.railroadiana.org/paper/pgPasses.php

Railroad passes from Duhuque include: